Damn, Friday is sneaky sneaky. No, seriously, I mean it. Hell, it seems like just yesterday that it wasn't Friday and now, BANG, here Friday is. Anyhow, due to this development, I am prepared to share with you kids the conclusion of the Royal Gorge trip pictures which I began sharing a couple of Fridays ago. Indeed, at the Royal Gorge, there's more to see than just the bridge. Well, ok...Maybe not, but there's certainly more than one way to cross the gorge...Don't believe me? Keep on readin' then...
you do your part (by clicking) and the pictures will do their part (by swelling to immense proportions)


So yeah, this picture is taken out of the front of the tram which spans the gorge. Yes, that's the other side of the gorge out there. Yes, that's the cable up top which is our only difference between a safe landing on that aforementioned "over there" and certain doom below. Yes, we rode the tram back across as opposed to walking across the bridge...Hey, when in Rome, right?


And since you're wondering (don't lie, you SO were), here's what the bridge looks like from the tram. Now, yeah...I could've certainly got more of the bridge in this shot, but I would've had to sacrifice that whole "bottom of the gorge" thing. You're welcome for the perspective there. Yes, it's pretty stinkin' high up there.


So following our tram ride across the gorge, it was time to take the incline railway to the bottom of it. Now, don't let the cool, official name of the ride fool you. It's a very narrow, clunky set of cages which takes you to the bottom whilst you stand up. Constructed back in the 1930s back when the earth was apparently populated by a race of physically fit homunculi, this "railway" leaves a lot to be desired as far as comfort for people of larger carriage such as myself. Anyhow, this picture is of the railway. The view is from the bottom looking up.


And here's the obligatory "bridge from the bottom" shot. Don't let the perspective fool you, I zoomed in as far as my little camera would go. Hey, if I hadn't, it's merely appear as a thin black bar against a clear blue sky. We can't have THAT, now can we?


Indeed, one of the major leisure time attractions at the gorge is the rafting. I took a picture of every raft which passed us while we were at the bottom (hey, there were at least four) but this raft was easily the most friendly. Observe how everyone except the guide and the apparently dead body next to the guide is mugging for the shot. They did pay for their lack of attentiveness toward rowing, however...Not long after I snapped this shot, the group rounded a bend and smacked headlong into the wall of the gorge. I chuckled, I couldn't help it. Good news, though: it woke that corpse right up.


Hey, here comes the train! This is the front of the engine of the Royal Gorge Route train. For a (significant) fee, it will take you through the gorge via rail and...well...I guess that's supposed to be "fun." Anyhow, what WAS fun was the fact that the train stopped right there under the observation deck at the bottom of the gorge. Even though you can't see it, there were several people standing up there. Well, as you may or may not know, trains don't just sound their whistle randomly, they're required to sound different blasts for different situations such as, oh, WHEN THEY STOP. Indeed, I've never seen so many people leap from their skin and feign heart attacks when the train sounded off just under their feet. It was the COOLEST.


Here we see the open observation car on the aforementioned train. Kind of look like cattle all packed in in the way to slaughter, don't they? I'll prefer a seat in the dining car, thank you.


And, back at the top of the gorge, I'll leave this photoblog with one last shot of the bridge. So yeah, that's it. Our trip out to the Royal Gorge in two weeks worth of pictures. As always, thanks for stopping by...You kids have a fine weekend now...

Labels: get outta town, Phrickin' Photoblogs